City reaches $74,500 settlement in excessive-force lawsuit

CHAMPAIGN — Pending council approval next week, the city of Champaign has settled a federal lawsuit filed by a 16-year-old who claimed he was arrested with excessive force for $74,500.

Tavion Jones-Premo, now 18, alleged that he was grabbed and forced to the ground when he was arrested Dec. 28, 2018.

“The settlement the parties reached is a fair resolution of the matter,” said his attorney, Shawn Barnett. “Tavion was a 16-year-old Black kid who was subjected to excessive force and arrested by members of the Champaign Police Department for no justifiable reason.”